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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22782577">Freshmen</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/shabootl/pseuds/shabootl'>shabootl</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Ikemen Sengokyuu!! Cleanfreak!Kuroko no Midnight Run [11]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball, イケメン戦国 時をかける恋 | Ikemen Sengoku: Toki o Kakeru Koi (Visual Novel)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, haikyuu au, im not sorry though, why am i writing for niche audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 16:21:52</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,944</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22782577</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/shabootl/pseuds/shabootl</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>There's some new kids on the block.<br/>In which Kuroko stuns the team with his 'tossing', and Kageyama learns the number one ace's true nature.</p>
<p>First chapter is a reupload. Future chapters will be coming out<br/>This work is completely unrelated to other works in the 'Sengokyuu!!' series</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Ikemen Sengokyuu!! Cleanfreak!Kuroko no Midnight Run [11]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1634479</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Freshmen</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>There's some new kids on the block.<br/>In which Kuroko stuns the team with his 'tossing', and Kageyama learns the number one ace's true nature.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hmm. So these are the fresh meat, eh?” Nekomata looked between two first-year recruits, sizing them up.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re forgetting the guy over there..” Without looking up from his game, Kenma pointed to the blue-haired boy standing next to Nekomata.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nekomata nearly jumped in surprise.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The boy bowed. “Hello. I’m Kuroko Tetsuya from Teiko Junior High. I played setter in middle school.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oho.” Nekomata’s eyes gleamed. “I was not expecting one of the Generation of Miracles here.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Generation of Miracles?” Taketora repeated.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nekomata chuckled. “There was talk about five first-years who overwhelmed the entire prefecture. Even Shiratorizawa lost to them three-years in a row.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Taketora’s head whipped to the side. “And you’re one of them? Seriously?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ah—” Kuroko stopped himself. “I played at Teiko, but I was on the bench.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Most of the team visibly deflated.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oi, oi!” Kuroo clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. “Generation of Miracles or not, you trained with the best of them. Welcome to the club, noobs.”</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>Ten minutes into practice, it did not appear as though Kuroko Tetsuya had never touched a volley ball in his life.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hm.” Nekomata watched the boy with trained eyes, then he chuckled. “Kuroko-kun has the worst stats that I have ever seen.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I mean, we can whip him into shape,” Kuroo said, watching Kuroko alongside his coach. “Not much different than Kenma.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m surprised you hadn’t noticed, Kuroo. Kuroko-kun is the complete opposite of Kenma.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Coach and captain watched Kuroko repeatedly try and fail to hit any of Kenma’s tosses. His reach only extended to just over the net, and the tosses Kuroko did hit were weak or went out of bounds. Despite his horrible skills, anyone could tell the immense energy he put into practice.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I see,” Kuroo said. Then he went in to switch up the drills.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m splitting us into teams. Kenma and Kuroko will be the opposing setters. Kenma’s team will have…”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was the wildest team practice in a while. It first started off very shaky. Kuroko’s tosses weren’t aligning with the spikers--which wasn’t too surprising since it always took some practice to get in sync with new teammates. But after several quick failed tosses, Kuroko drew his team in and whispered something to them before facing the court again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And then, the madness happened. Kuroo wasn’t sure how, but the volleyball seemed to zip through the air, sometimes at almost an impossible speed. Kuroko had to keep apologizing for the too-fast tosses. There were times Kuroo couldn’t read block because the ball would change positions so quickly. And there was one more horrifying thing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“He’s all over the court,” Kenma mumbled to Kuroo just before the next serve. “At the start, he was doing the normal role as a setter and his tossing was god-awful.” Kenma almost looked relieved that someone was actually worse than him. “But now--I don’t know what he said to his teammates, but now he’s not actually tossing; he’s passing--well, more of a hybrid of the two.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Huh. You’re so smart, kitten.” Kuroo ruffled Kenma’s hair and the boy slapped Kuroo’s hand away. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>After Kuroo relayed Kenma’s observations to the coach, Nekomata nodded. “Yes, I’ve noticed quite as much,” he said. “What an unorthodox setter. I’ve heard a good amount about the Generation of Miracles, but I never expected something like this. This will prove to be an interesting year.” Nekomata chuckled again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>…………</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Tetsu-kuuuun!” The high-pitched voice of a bubbly girl reverberated throughout the gym.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Huh?” Kuroo looked up.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Behind him, Taketora gaped and grasped at Kuroo. “Kuroo. You...girlfriend...pretty…”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Whoa!” Inouka and Fukunaga looked to themselves, then at Kuroo, then at the girl, then back at each other. “Kuroo has a <em>girlfriend? </em>”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kuroo turned around to see a pink-haired highschool-girl at the doorway. Her uniform, however, was black instead of red. Kuroo turned pink. He’d never had some random girl use his given name before, but he braced himself as captain and walked up to her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hello,” Kuroo said. His voice nearly cracked. “I don’t think we’ve met before. Can I help you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The girl’s eyes found his. “Hi! Yes. You must be the captain of the volleyball team. Kuroo-san, correct?” The girl didn’t waste any time waiting for Kuroo to reply and looked around him all over the gym. “I’m looking for my— Tetsu-kuuuun!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The girl squealed when Kuroko walked out of the storage closet with the volleyball cart. She ran up and tackled him, accidentally knocking over the cart, spilling the balls everywhere.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Momoi-san,” Kuroko said in his usual monotone. “Why are you here?” He helped Satsuki to her feet.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Am I not allowed to visit my boyfriend?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Off in the corner, Kenma sighed. The rest of the second-years choked on themselves. Lev, however, had no less than an exuberant reaction.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Wow, Kuroko-kun.” The spindly-legged boy ran over. “Your girlfriend is so pretty.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Momoi tilted her head with a smile. “Why thank you, Haiba-san.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Lev gaped, taken aback. “How did you know my name?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Momoi’s smile turned a bit unsettling, and addressed the entire team. “I know all of your names.” She pointed to each player and listed their names one by one. “...and, lastly, there’s my Tetsu-kun!” Momoi squeezed Kuroko tightly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Mo--Momoi-san,” Kuroko gasped. “I can’t breath.” His face was smothered in Satsuki’s ample bosom.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh my god.” Taketora melted onto the floor, eyes glued on Kuroko’s predicament. “If there was ever a time to live through someone—” Yaku chopped him on the head.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Don’t act like an idiot,” Yaku said. “It’s so embarrassing.” Despite scolding his kohai, Yaku had to fight a snicker at the stunned expression on Kuroo’s face. The poor captain was still frozen in place.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Momoi-san,” Kuroko said. “We have practice now.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Satsuki whined. “Tetsu-kun is never happy to see me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kuroko regarded her with his neutral face. “I’m never unhappy to see you, Momoi-san.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ahem.” Kuroo finally came out of his stupor. “We don’t do visits during practice. Especially from an opposing school.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, silly.” Momoi waved. “I’m simply observing. I already have all the data I need on Nekoma. I just couldn’t resist a visit.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Momoi-san, are you managing at Touou?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Touou?” Yaku said. “The powerhouse?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“<em> Manager? </em>” Taketora whispered under his breath.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Momoi sent them a blinding smile. “Yep.” She turned to Kuroko. “It’s not too late, Tetsu-kun. Come to Touou with me and Aomine-kun!” She pouted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I can’t Momoi-san,” Kuroko said. “Also, you’re disturbing the team. You should leave now.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After a few minutes more of whining in Kuroko’s ear, Satsuki left the gym.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Phew,” Yaku said. “I was thinking I had to get campus security. And oi! Loser!” Yaku slapped Kuroo hard on the back. “Act like a captain, why don’t you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Off to the side, Inouka and Fukunaga tried hard to muffle their snickers.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hush, Yakkun. You’d never understand the enchanting sight of a goddess yelling your name--”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And neither will you since she wasn’t even talking to you!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ack! Let me go, you failed release of luteinizing and follicle-stimulating hormones!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m saving the planet of a mutation, you sad result of Uncombable Hair Syndrome!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kenma took this as an opportunity to sneak out the gym.</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>“I’m first-year Kageyama Tobio. I played setter at Kitagawa Daichi.” Kageyama held out his club application form. This new senpai was terrifying. He’d heard a lot about Kasugayama High, but he never got to see the number one ace in the country in person.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Uesugi Kenshin snatched the paper and tossed it to the side. “We already have a setter.” He turned to walk away, and Kageyama gaped at his back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“W-Wait!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A hand clapped down on Kageyama’s shoulder. “Don’t mind Kenshin. It takes him a minute to adjust to new people. I’m Sasuke by the way.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kageyama nodded. “Hi.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Don’t greet this scrub, Sasuke. Come toss for me,” Kenshin called from the net.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sasuke ignored Kenshin. “I’ve heard a lot about you, Kageyama-kun. And your...playing style isn’t entirely strange to us, though it would be beneficial for you to work with the team.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kageyama stiffened, watching Kenshin spike against the wall. The blonde hit so hard, Kageyama was surprised there wasn’t a crack in the wall. “Yeah.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sasuke retrieved Kageyama’s application. “As the vice-captain, I approve your application, under one condition.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What’s that?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You can’t quit the team, no matter what Kenshin does,” Sasuke said this with the utmost seriousness, or at least, what Kageyama could tell from the boy’s emotionless face.</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>A few minutes later, Kageyama was acquainted with Sasuke’s ‘bro’, the rest of the first and second years, and finally…</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You!” Kenshin served a ball directly to the boy entering the gym.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The boy received the ball, not without a visible wince of pain, and walked over to greet the first-years. He introduced himself as Shingen, and once he saw Kageyama, Shingen’s eyes lit up.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ohoho! So this is the infamous Kageyama Tobio.” Shingen gave him a gentle smile. “We’ll fix you up well and good.” He patted a confused Kageyama’s head. “I’m the captain here and—”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Quit speaking lies, Tiger of Kai!” Kenshin jump served at Shingen again, but Sasuke intercepted before it could hit Shingen. “I am the captain here!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kageyama gaped. <em>This </em>was Uesugi Kenshin?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shingen chuckled. “Don’t fear, Kageyama-kun. Kenshin will adjust to you soon enough.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>I’m worried about me adjusting to Kenshin </em>. Kageyama’s eyes followed Kenshin as he spiked balls at Sasuke, who somehow expertly dodged every one. If Kageyama didn’t know any better, he would’ve guessed Sasuke was a libero. Kenshin definitely made him anxious, but he was still the number one ace for a reason, and Kageyama was going to drink in as much as he could.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>………………</p>
<p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
<p>“<em> No </em>,” Kenshin said, crossing his arms and frowning like a toddler. “Only Sasuke will be my setter. Kageyama can be the substitute setter, not that Sasuke will ever need one.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kageyama boiled with rage. Sure, he was a first year and he wanted to prove himself to be a starter, but to be rejected so harshly without being able to demonstrate his skills. Two weeks of practice had already set in and Kenshin adamantly refused to let Kageyama set for him. Kageyama’s clenched fists shook. Had Kenshin heard of the ‘King’ disaster? Was that it?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Kenshin, this is only a practice game,” Sasuke said, adjusting his glasses. “It would be good for Kageyama-kun to get used to playing with the team in an actual match.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kenshin scoffed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Yukimura, who was standing next to Kageyama, sighed. “Get use to this, Kageyama. It’s only worse from here.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>That’s it! </em>Kageyama wasn’t one to angrily confront his senpai, but this Kenshin was pissing him off. Kageyama marched up to Kenshin, eyes blazing with rage. “Uesugi-senpai,” Kageyama said. Kageyama swallowed down the icy feeling Kenshin’s mismatched eyes gave him. “I can prove to you that you will like my sets.” Kageyama had never really done any special tosses since coming to Kasugayama. The last thing he needed was to hear the name “King” again. But he’d seen enough of Kenshin’s attack style. “Let me in for the second set, and I’ll make sure we get a two-set win.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kenshin narrowed his eyes, scanning Kageyama with clear distaste. “Is that a challenge?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes,” Kageyama said without hesitation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Fine,” Kenshin said. “But if we lose that set, you will <em>never </em>play setter.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Kageyama swallowed, but despite this, his mouth still felt dry. He nodded.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Prepare to lose, Kageyama!"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Kenshin, Kageyama is on our side, remember?"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Hush, Sasuke, nothing will interfere with my plans!"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Now, now, Kenshin. No need to scare away the first-years."</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Quiet, Tiger of Kai!"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Overlooking the scene with a dubious expression, Yukimura face-palmed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Uncombable Hair Syndrome is a real thing.</p>
<p>And I love writing the warlords as Haikyuu characters for some reason.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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